Comedian Gabriel "Fluffy" Iglesias performs at the Rivercenter Comedy Club in 2007.

Comedian Gabriel "Fluffy" Iglesias performs at the Rivercenter Comedy Club in 2007.

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Tracy Morgan: The former “SNL” actor’s only visit in March 2006 stunk it up with an act that at the time boiled down to “mumbled minutiae of the human sex act,” the San Antonio Express-News reported. “Thought you were gonna get Brian Fellow?” Morgan asked.

Chris Rock: The Brooklyn comic showed so much more than his “SNL” riffs and brought audiences to tears. Offstage was a different story. “He was very shy,” Barshop said. “He’s really introverted.” Pictured: Chris Rock performs at the Majestic Theater Friday, January 16, 2003.

George Lopez: Freaked out when he learned the Los Angeles comedy troupe Culture Clash was opening one of his shows and refused to enter the nightclub. “He threw a total tantrum,” Barshop said. “He didn’t want to be known as a Latino comedian. You sit there and go, ‘Are you kidding me?’”

Doug Stanhope: Stripped naked at a Midnight Blue show. “He refused to keep his clothes on,” Colleen Barshop said. “He went up there wearing a raincoat and then he took it off and he was stark naked. We ran up there and put clothing on him. I wouldn’t have him back for a few years.”

Doug Stanhope: Stripped naked at a Midnight Blue show. “He refused to keep his clothes on,” Colleen Barshop said. “He went up there wearing a raincoat and then he took it off and he was stark naked. We

Katt Williams: The comic showed up and jammed impromptu. Colleen Barshop is chagrined that she didn’t know who he was. “I was so impressed. Those little things are fun. Drew Carey likes to drive, and he’s come in a couple of times just to say ‘Hi’ to the staff.”

Margaret Cho: The comedic actress had just lost her “All-American Girl” show when she arrived and lamented the lack of Asian-Americans on prime-time TV. “What with my show being canceled, Connie Chung off the air and Judge Ito being gone, the only one left is David Carradine (‘Kung Fu’), and he has to squint,” Cho said in November 1999.

Margaret Cho: The comedic actress had just lost her “All-American Girl” show when she arrived and lamented the lack of Asian-Americans on prime-time TV. “What with my show being canceled, Connie Chung off

“When Bruce asked me what business we should have downtown, a comedy club is what I thought of,” said Colleen Barshop, who had operated rock 'n' roll nightclubs and restaurants before opening Rivercenter Comedy Club. “I'd never done a comedy club.”

Rivercenter Comedy Club celebrates its 20th anniversary this weekend with Willie Barcena. It opened June 3, 1993.

Things worked out.

The A-list room was a hit from the beginning thanks to booking up-and-coming acts and big names. Wackiness was a given with the help of Los Angeles talent agents Jimmy Miller, Rick Messina, Rich Miller and Dave Becky, who the Barshops cultivated on trips to the West Coast.

The club gave San Antonio its first look at future stars and, by providing a platform for Latino comics, helped change the face of the business.

“It's been fun,” said Colleen Barshop, who runs Rivercenter Comedy Club and the newer Laugh Out Loud Comedy Club at Park North Plaza, describing what she calls “all that crazy stuff.”

Then there was the time that a magician's act set off the sprinkler system and no one knew how to turn it off.

Often on the receiving end of the jokes, the “comedy club in the mall” was actually a locale for pushing the envelope and for exposing Latino comedy for the first time to a national audience.

The Barshops partnered with producers Jeff Valdez and Paul Block to create the Latino Laugh Festival in 1996, which utilized several venues (including the Rivercenter club) and was taped and broadcast on Showtime.

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Funny moments

Doug Stanhope: Stripped naked at a Midnight Blue show. “He refused to keep his clothes on,” Colleen Barshop said. “He went up there wearing a raincoat and then he took it off and he was stark naked. We ran up there and put clothing on him. I wouldn’t have him back for a few years.”

George Lopez: Freaked out when he learned the Los Angeles comedy troupe Culture Clash was opening one of his shows and refused to enter the nightclub. “He threw a total tantrum,” Barshop said. “He didn’t want to be known as a Latino comedian. You sit there and go, ‘Are you kidding me?’”

Chris Rock: The Brooklyn comic showed so much more than his “SNL” riffs and brought audiences to tears. Offstage was a different story. “He was very shy,” Barshop said. “He’s really introverted.”

Margaret Cho: The comedic actress had just lost her “All-American Girl” show when she arrived and lamented the lack of Asian-Americans on prime-time TV. “What with my show being canceled, Connie Chung off the air and Judge Ito being gone, the only one left is David Carradine (‘Kung Fu’), and he has to squint,” Cho said in November 1999.

Gallagher: The sledgehammer-wielding comic made a watermelon mess. “We had to cover everything with plastic. And he still got stuff everywhere,” said Colleen Barshop.

Brett Butler: The former “Grace Under Fire” star had become a tabloid target and onstage took swipes at Kathie Lee Gifford, which drew horrified gasps. “Aw, what are the odds we share fans?” Butler responded.

Tracy Morgan: The former “SNL” actor’s only visit in March 2006 stunk it up with an act that at the time boiled down to “mumbled minutiae of the human sex act,” the San Antonio Express-News reported. “Thought you were gonna get Brian Fellow?” Morgan asked.

Katt Williams: The comic showed up and jammed impromptu. Colleen Barshop is chagrined that she didn’t know who he was. “I was so impressed. Those little things are fun. Drew Carey likes to drive, and he’s come in a couple of times just to say ‘Hi’ to the staff.”

It also gave underdogs, including San Antonio's Rick Gutierrez and El Paso's absolutely brilliant Freddy Soto, their first big shots. Mitzi Shore, owner of Los Angeles' fabled Comedy Store, was right there and loved it.

“It was critical. The most important thing. I owe my career to that club,” said Gutierrez, who tours with Gabriel Iglesias.

The venture led to Bruce Barshop, who genuinely loves live stand-up comedy and is often at LOL, forming the successful cable network SíTV — now rebranded as nuvoTV.

“The best part is getting to see a lot of comics on the way up,” he said.

“I didn't get into it for the money,” Colleen Barshop said. “It's just so wonderful, to see young comics succeed. I'm most proud of being able to give people jobs. Some have been with me for years.”

In 1996, Andy Kindler, a comic who is to sarcasm what Madonna once was to sex, made his first visit. It was a rough week for the rising star, but he praises the Barshops for taking a chance on him — and comedy clubs.

“They opened their club after the comedy boom of the late '80s and early '90s collapsed,” Kindler said. “All I had was sarcasm, self-deprecation and rage. Bruce and Colleen believed in me and bravely attempted to get San Antonio audiences to enjoy me. Sometimes they were the only people in the crowd laughing. And they rebooked me, which even I thought was going too far.”

Eddie Gossling was a local meat cutter when he first did stand-up at the club. He now writes for Daniel Tosh.

Willie Barcena performs Wednesday through Sunday at Rivercenter Comedy Club on the third level of Rivercenter mall, 849 E. Commerce. Show times are 8:30 p.m. Wednesday, Thursday and Sunday, and 8:30 and 10:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday. Tickets available at www.rivercenter comedyclub.com.